d.anders

Here's a very interesting discussion of the first two episodes of Heated Rivalry. I think all three guys are straight, and they are definitely watching.

There aren't many good ones. Josh O'Conner showed his beautiful cock in God's Own Country.

There seems to be a lot of online chatter about this show. This happens when people start talking en masse about surprise hits. It's not an HBO production. They purchased it from Canada, already made. I first heard HBO was down on gay content, losing gay subscribers. Then they went and bought this. I would love to know the numbers. Lots of fans of the book, I'm hearing. It has young people appeal, much like Call Me By Your Name did. I don't see straight males watching this, especially sports fans. However, young males and females, adult females, and all the gay market could make up for the straight male loss. Like I said, I would find the numbers quite fascinating. Closeted males in professional sports is a very hot topic. And the two lead actors, particularly the guy playing the Russian, are amazing. Both men have sexy bodies and great asses. Of course, I would love to see cock, but I doubt that will happen. No Cooper Koch here.

WOW. So far, I'm very impressed. These are some of the best gay sex scenes I've ever seen. These scenes are incredibly difficult to film, especially when not exposing actor cock is a mandate. The story seems ripe with tension and conflict. The actor casting appears to be spot on. This show has hit written all over it. No wonder the buzz is through the roof. Good for them.

I read the Wiki synopsis after finishing the series. I did not like the writing at all. I do feel sorry for the screenplay writer and all the folks who had to read it to acquire a green light. These complicated mysteries are not easy to flesh out on paper. The series is not John le Carré. Even though the story is complicated, it's fairly easy watching. I had no problem staying with the characters and keeping track of the action. The mystery gets solved little by little, which is why many people say the series is addictive.

This new 8 episode mystery thriller mostly held me through a decent binge watch. I was particularly impressed with Sarah Snook (who is executive producing) and Dakota Fanning. I'm not sure about Jake Lacy's (White Lotus) casting, but I have to say his acting mostly held up. It's a high drama, roller-coaster type story about a child kidnapping from wealthy parents, and is based on a book by the same name. The story is complicated, with lots of twists and turns. Plenty of secrets revealed along the way. Enough mystery to keep you on the edge until the very last episode. There is a lengthy synopsis on Wikipedia, but it's full of spoilers. Apparently, the show has received critical praise, and 79% on Rotten Tomatoes. Nigel Merchant and Gareth Neame of Downton Abbey fame are also exec producers. It's not a perfect mystery, which is very hard to find these days. The story does have some eye roll moments. However, I would say this is a significant effort in the mystery/thriller space.

Judging by what you read on this board, it seems there is a percentage of messed-up customers. Perhaps it's the nature of the beast. Some gay men don't know how to behave. It's a shame, because the bad apples tend to spoil everything for everyone else. Thank you Lewis for having the courage to post here. I loved reading what you had you to say.

I tried watching some of the screening talks on YouTube, but they are very difficult to stomach given that I did not like the film. Like most Italian artists, Luca Guadagnino seems to have a huge ego, and everyone involved seems convinced they made a master work of art. They are deluded, and that's a bitter pill to swallow. Luca keeps talking about this "brilliant screenplay," and I just want to gag. I read the movie cost somewhere between $70-80 million to make. I also hear Julia Roberts got $20 million. So far, the worldwide gross is $9.3 million, which makes this film a colossal fail. Most people I know in NYC have never heard of it. I had a quick look at audience reviews on Rotten Tomatoes, and those comments were more entertaining than the movie.

There is a lot of buzz about Heated Rivalry on HBO Max, especially among gay TV fans. When a thread merge took place, why were these important words not included in the thread title?

I didn't see the reunion, but I was a huge fan of this show. It always made me laugh. I thought Doris Roberts was amazing as Marie. Such perfect casting. I'm glad she got to experience this level of success in her later years. A rare thing.

This boy is most definitely a red head. Even with his highlights, I'll put money on the groin hair being red.

Lots of straight guys (and some gay guys, too) don't enjoy gay gawkers, especially the hungry ones. Many younger straights are indeed more modest, maybe more insecure about their bodies/junk. In a place like NYC, where gay gawkers stand out in a crowd, there are plenty of guys who don't want to be ogled or lusted after by another male. It can make someone who has no interest in gay cruising feel very uncomfortable. A gay gawker typically has no clue how intrusive his behavior actually is. Someone would have to film a gawker in a locker room, show him the video, and let him see what his behavior looks like. Gawking is almost never discreet.

There's a rumor going around that a pardon is imminent. I will not be surprised if it becomes truth.

I haven't yet watched the screening talks on YouTube. I will eventually get there. I thought there were some good lines, like the one you mentioned. There weren't enough of them. I thought the premise of the movie was worth exploring. IMO, Luca deserved a better script. Many of the negative reviews focus on the script. I disliked the first 30 minutes. I enjoyed the mystery and tension of the clock ticking, but I disliked the phony, pretentious half-dialogue. And those bursts of musical brass didn't seem to work for me. I absolutely hated the ending.

I finally saw this film recently on Netflix. Holy shit. I guess there is something to be said for a film that grabs you by the balls and sort of forces you to watch. It's clever in the way it holds and manipulates you, keeping you curious for what could possibly come next. And then they eventually hit you with that ending, slap, slap, slapping you in the face with colored silly putty. At a certain point I questioned whether I was on LSD. "Hollywood machine" mentioned earlier seems apt to me. This movie seems very Hollywood to me, from naked head to toe. Demi Moore is very brave. At my age, I'm very careful who sees my ass. I'm OK with the front, but the back is nothing like it used to be. Her nipples are quite remarkable, made for porn movies. I don't think this part deserved any acting awards, so all the "acting" attention that she got for making this film seems kind of silly now that time has passed. I suspect the attention had more to do with her full-on nudity than it did for her lying comatose on a floor throughout most of the film. Then, there is that ending. It does deserve something. I did enjoy Margaret Qualley's performance. I thought the casting was spot-on. Would I ever watch it again? I'm reluctant to say maybe, but I doubt it.

Except it's not a review. It's an Op-Ed essay. Given the subject matter, this movie lends itself to discussion.

I have to disagree. There is purposeful tension and anxiety built into the script by the fact that these characters speak in riddles, carefully revealing nothing. And this is when they are not pretending to be Yale academics. Those philosophy words are mostly overwrought and incomprehensible, especially given the edits. They barely finish a sentence, or a complete thought. IMO, when I see description words like "psychological thriller," I've come to expect overwrought. It's professional. I just found it very unsatisfying. I think I hated the script.

Wasn't it Joan Collins who said all the published income numbers are fake? Those numbers are created for the tabloid public and media consumption. Unless you're someone like Cher who can tour, actors usually fall into the trap of wealth perception. It wasn't long ago where I saw Gary Oldman and Colin Farrell talking about serious financial lows in their lives. The public usually doesn't know the whole truth, because actors are typically very private about this stuff.

She's not alone. Thank you for the link. I thought Goldberg's Opinion piece was a fascinating and intelligent read, more intelligent than this movie. Reading Goldberg's piece helped further explain why the movie wasn't working for me. "Overwrought and self-satisfied," seems spot-on to me. Now that I found out about Brian Grazer, I dislike him and the movie even more.

I just watched it. I did not enjoy it.

With a $35 million budget, and only $1.7 million at the box office, Kiss of the Spider Woman may go down as one of the biggest flops ever. This guy wraps up the 2025 fails fairly succinctly. The amount of money in the hole is staggering.

If you can believe this report, it looks like he's run out of money.

I haven't seen or read any outside commentary from the actors. It wouldn't surprise me if Close is openly expressing her negative opinion. I watched 2.5 episodes at a friend's house, who happens to enjoy hate watching. He was curious to see what I thought. I have no plans to re-join Hulu, and I certainly have no desire to tune into this show ever again. It's Hollywood production at its worst.

A phone and underwear in a sauna? Two red flags for me.

I cannot believe how bad this show is. Another high-drama attempt by Ryan Murphy. It stars a lot of known names, but the material is so bad, they all look and sound silly. It's a show about female lawyers written by a RuPaul Drag Race contestant. Kim Kardashian is particularly awful. Can't act her way out of a paper bag. Hard to believe that Glenn Close, Naomi Watts, and Sarah Paulson signed up for this schlock. Niecy Nash-Betts went from a nail salon to this, same character. Has anyone seen this? Is anyone enjoying it? It has 4% on Rotten Tomatoes. That sounds about right to me.